Five questions with Florida beat writer Rachel George

With the Gators on their way to Nashville, we checked in with Florida beat writer Rachel George of the Orlando Sentinel for some insight on Vanderbilt’s next opponent.

Here are the five questions we posed and her answers:

1. Florida rebounded from a three-game losing streak to get a pivotal overtime win over Georgia to stay in the SEC East race. How good is this football team right now in the eyes of Urban Meyer and Florida fans? Aside from Tim Tebow, what is missing?

George: “It seems like everyone is cautiously optimistic. The team looked much better than it has, but the Gators still needed overtime to beat a mediocre Georgia team. Relying on the no-huddle offense not only helped Florida have success on that side of the ball, for the first time in a while, really. It somewhat pacified the fans who have been upset with that unit’s lack of production.

“In terms of what is missing, a few things come to mind. Consistent line play is one that would help a lot of the others. Florida has only dominated the line of scrimmage a couple times this season. But luckily for them, one of those was against Georgia when the Bulldogs defensive front was exhausted. The Gators have also been without playmakers. Tebow was a playmaker, and no one player here is expected to fill his shoes. But not having Jeff Demps because of injury and Chris Rainey because of suspension certainly took their toll. Other than that, the Gators have lacked experience. The team has had veteran guys to lead and make plays the past few seasons, but the ones that Florida relies on this season are young or in their first season as starters.”

2. Does Meyer see Trey Burton as a great athlete who can take some snaps at quarterback, or a genuine quarterback who happens to be a great athlete? Can he be compared to Kentucky’s Randall Cobb?

George: “Meyer has said Burton’s a quarterback, but he’s also asking Burton to play several positions because the Gators need that much help. Burton has played five positions this season, although the Gators have taken him off kickoffs in recent games. He’s valuable because defenses have to know where he is.

“Randall Cobb is similar in that they’re versatile, but he only appears at quarterback in the wildcat. Burton can play other positions, but he’s been used at QB to run the option.”

3. With six touchdown passes and six interceptions, quarterback John Brantley’s stats have been mediocre. What are the pros and cons to his game, and were the expectations placed on him entirely too high?

George: Whoever the next quarterback ended up being, it was always going to be difficult to replace Tebow. So Brantley probably has had some high expectations placed on him. But part of that comes from the hype about him. He was the top quarterback in the country coming out of high school and is a great passer. That he’s underachieved can be attributed to a couple things. First, the players around him are new as well. Tebow had guys like Riley Cooper, Percy Harvin and David Nelson around him. And the current players have not performed at that level. Part of Brantley’s struggle is taking over an offense he’s not really made to fit. Florida’s spread-option makes it difficult for a passing quarterback to run the ball. Brantley can throw but hasn’t been put in a position to have a big impact that way.”

4. Florida is plus-five in turnover margin with an SEC-best 20 takeaways (16 interceptions). What have the Gators done well to force turnovers, and who are a couple of defenders the Commodores must be ready for?

George: “While the pass rush has struggled, the pass coverage has been great at times. The Gators have an experienced secondary that has definitely been the strength of the team this year. The players say their success with interceptions comes from the belief that if a ball is in the air, it is just as much theirs as their opponent’s. That has made them successful. Four players – CB Jeremy Brown, CB Janoris Jenkins, SS Ahmad Black and LB Jonathan Bostic – each have three interceptions. They are all dangerous. And the emergence of FS Will Hill, who had his best game at Florida last week with two interceptions, make that secondary tough to pass on.”

5. Vanderbilt is last in the SEC in total offense and total defense and has lost 19 in a row to Florida. Coming off the Georgia game, is there any sense that the Gators are looking past this one?

George: “I might have expected that, but there really isn’t that sense around the team this week. They’re very concerned with how they’re playing and what they need to fix, especially since next week’s game against South Carolina could mean so much. I think they realize they’re not going to win on reputation alone and that they can lose to teams they have traditionally beaten.”

About The Author

Jeff Lockridge

I have been on the Vanderbilt beat since 2009, at The Tennessean since 2000 and a sports journalist since 1997. Prior to Vanderbilt, I covered primarily high schools from 2000-09. My reporting history also includes stints covering the Titans, Auburn and minor league baseball. I'm a Nashville native and a graduate of Overton High (1993) and Austin Peay (1997). I live in Fr